Seems weird after months of planning and thinking about it - this morning I am off. (Friday). And here is a photo of me loading up at home, ready to go! (That's the one on the right.) Possibly the most perfect bike riding day I have ever seen - it is balmy and fine and calm, not much traffic on the Hume heading north. And it's great to be in a bike! The smells and the feel of the air.

One after another, wide green valleys open in front of me, with the freeway winding through them to the next like a colossal concrete snake. In the photo above on the left you can see a wind farm in the distance - near Goulburn - there are about 15 turbines in this one. Such delicate, graceful structures; what a pity they are the first step in turning Australia into Spain (economy on its knees because of a determined effort to use wind power).

First meal away from home: and its a ragged sort of KFC item, at Gundagai. Ah well. The food will improve. By late afternoon I have reached Goulburn and have checked into a motel for the night.

Saturday - and it's raining - as I load up and put on my rain jacket what is this in the pocket? It seems like - it can't be - it isn't! IT IS!!! the lost door keys from a couple of weeks ago! Then a ride in the rain through the outskirts of Sydney, and how lush it all looks here - to Avoca where I am spending a couple of days with our friends Mike and Barb. On the way up here I have been struck again (as always) by the sheer beauty of freeways: their sinuous curves and exciting bridges, a perfect piece of man-made engineering contrasting with the wild natural surroundings, and the freeway just north of Sydney is the best example.

Good to get out of the riding gear and into light clothes, and an alfresco lunch with another couple who have just got back from a trip to north QLD in their Winnebago. Their advice: don't go to Cairns from Townsville, spend a day on Magnetic Island instead. Good thinking. And the lava tubes at Undarra (near Mt Surprise) are worth a visit, but a half day tour is what you want not a full day. Essential to book before you go, don't just rock up. Well I won't be able to fit that in on this trip, but will remember that for next year.

So far, good riding, and I'm feeling great. No aches and pains and the slight head cold I had when I left home is disappearing fast. Only problem is I forgot some of my clothes ( may need to buy a couple of shirts) and will need a complete re-pack of the underseat and top box areas on the bike.

When I left home yesterday I just wanted to GET GOING. So I have clothing I can't find, and medications that should be stashed away out of reach because they are not needed for some time yet, and many items that are not needed to hand easily which could be under the seat where it is too hot for food - all sorts of issues here, it just needs a re-think.

Loading the bike. There are several principles to follow when loading a bike for a lengthy tour, especially if carrying a lot of gear (that is, camping rather than motelling).

It is important that gear which needs to be kept dry can be kept completely dry in even the worst weather. So in my case, I have the underseat storage (about 30 litres), the Givi top box behind the pillion seat (50 litres) and a waterproof stuff sack on the pillion (it is two-ended, in other words can be opened at either end for easy access). These 3 storage facilities are the water proof ones. Everything else is strapped onto the pillion seat - that is, wet weather riding gear (must be right there when needed, ready to put on in a hurry); the tent; and some of the cooking gear and groundsheet, not necessary to keep it dry in fact it will often be wet when packing up in the morning anyway.

Some things need to be available quickly and easily. These include a first aid kit; money; phone; water; and a quick change of clothes. These things travel either in pockets of the riding jacket or in the top box. (Most bikes can have a tank bag fitted to the top of the fuel tank - but not the T Max, because of its scootery configuration).

The photo above shows the fully loaded T Max ready for departure. The grey thing is the two-ended waterproof bag; the white bag contains cooking stuff and a groundsheet (could get wet, won't matter) and the yellow bag contains raingear and a spare pair of gloves. The tent is under all this, rolled up in its own bag.

That last one makes it look as if I have actually arrived in Darwin - but it is only 23rd August, I haven't even left home yet! It was just a bit of speculation!

OK, I'm in Darwin. The Darwin Symposium is great fun. It will be over in due course - then what?

Well you might ask. It depends a bit on how I feel by the time I reach Darwin. Several possibilities -
1. My bum is so sore I never want to see this motorcycle (or any other) ever again.
2. I have had enough riding for now. Just take me home.
3. I feel 20 years younger, I want to keep on riding!
4. I started this thing and by golly I will finish it ....

And so there are several possible plans. Probably the best one is sell the bike in Darwin (I would like a change anyway and next year could be another long trip best done on a touring bike) and then fly home. Another possibility is to ship the bike home by road or rail and fly home. Another possibility is to simply keep going and ride home on the T Max. All of these have drawbacks and advantages. We will see, of course someone suggested to me that if the bike is insured (it is) then simply set fire to it one night on the side of the road....then again it would be easier to just leave the keys in the ignition somewhere suitable....

The project. Well! It's about to happen - the Crowtrapper is going on a Big Trip on the Bike. For many years, I've had the idea at the back of my mind, to do a bike ride (motorbike that is, I'm not a complete masochist) around Australia.

This present trip will go about half way around: Albury to Darwin. Several thousand kilometres, from cold late winter weather in the south to the heat of the tropics.

But why would anyone leave the South to travel north at this time of year? It is late winter - would it not be better to go early in the winter, maybe May or June? Yes it would be. However, this timing is to enable me to attend the Darwin Symposium, in Darwin, at Charles Darwin University - celebrating 200 years since Charles Darwin's birth and 150 years since the publication of "The Origin of Species".

The Bike. For several years I have owned a Yamaha T-Max, which is an oversized scooter really. 500cc, cruises OK at 110 km/h, so it is suitable for touring. I know the bike and have confidence in it as far as reliability goes, so rather than replacing it with a more usual tourer, I will use the T-Max for this trip.However, the full enclosure of the motor in fairings, along with somewhat smaller wheels than a touring bike, means that dirt roads are out. It must all happen on bitumen
.



The photos show the bike, ready to load; and a detail of the Airhawk seat, a very necessary part of the equipment for a long ride - it has been tested and found to be GOOD. The original seat on the T Max is pretty good as bike seats go, but the Airhawk is very superior! It is filled with a number of tiny aircells, which can be inflated to suit the rider's weight and preferences, hard to soft.

The Plan.The plan is, up the east coast to Townsville, then west across Queensland, through Julia Creek and Mount Isa to Tennant Creek (or 3-ways actually) then north to Darwin.

I will leave Albury on the 27th August, and with a break of several days in Noosa on the way up the coast, I am planning on reaching Darwin on 21st September.

Most days I will cover about 300 km so it is an easy pace. Some days are 450 km or so; I have already done some shakedown trips with the same amount of gear I will have for this one, and I know I can do well over 450 and still be able to walk the next day! Don't laugh, this old body is not as flexible as it once was, and I intend to enjoy the ride rather than making it an extreme achievement...

There is plenty of help out there for a project like this. So far I have combed the internet and found a number of really helpful sites, with advice about loading the bike, what to take, different approaches to doing a long trip - camping, credit-card camping (motelling), travelling light, travelling compact, how to handle emergencies of various kinds, etc etc etc.

Some useful web sites:

Motorcycle Packing for a Short Trip and a Longer Trip
Andy Strapz - Motorbike Bags, Straps, Panniers, Over Gloves - Australian Made
Motorcycle Trip Checklist
Light Weight Cooking